Animal trap minnow bait



Aug 23, 1949- 'A. J. FULBRIGHT, sR l 2,479,611

ANIMAL TRAP MINNOW BAIT Patented ug. 23, 17949 UNITED STATES PATENT VGFF l CE ANIMAL 'TRAP MINNOW BAIT Alson J. Fulbright, Sr., Little Rock, Ark.

Application March 25, 1947,"Seral N0. 736,932

1l-Claim. 1

This invention relates to spinning minnows actuated by water passing thereover and used in combination with animal traps positioned in fthe water,.and in particular includes :a plate forming a base with a twisted element forming a minnow or the like rotatably mounted in upwardly extending bearing elements at the ends of the base.

The purpose of this invention is to provide means for attracting fish-eating animals, such as racoons, to traps positioned in shallow water or below small falls.

Many animals, particularly of the cat family and racoons, are fond of fish and feed in small streams, waterfalls, and the like, and with this thought in mind, lthis invention contemplates a spinner resembling a small fish, such as a minnow, with a mounting element therefor by which the spinner may be mounted on or attached to an animal trap.

An object of this invention is to provide means for mounting a spinner in a freely rotatable position by which the spinner may readily be attached to a trap for animals and the like.

Another object of the invention is to provide a spinner mounting wherein the spinner is freely rotatable in upwardly extending elements and the longitudinal movement thereof is limited by projections on the upwardly extending elements contacting opposite ends of a shaft or shafts upon which the minnow is mounted.

Spinners used as bait in combination with animal traps are subjected to considerable abuse and may be destroyed by the animal, and for this reason an essential object of the invention is to provide a spinner of comparatively simple and economical construction, wherein the spinner may be discarded after use.

With these and other objects in view, the invention embodies a relatively flat base plate with upwardly extending ends having apertures therein and a spinner formed of a twisted plate with small stub shafts extending at the ends and adapted to be rotatably mounted in the apertures of the upwardly extending ends of the base.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description, taken in connection with the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a plan View illustrating the spinner mounted on an animal trap.

Figure 2 is a view showing a side elevation of the spinner and mounting base therefor.

Figure 3 is a detail sectional View through one end of the spinner base illustrating the shaft mounting inthe upwardly extending ends ofthe base.

'Referring now .to fthe drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate corresponding parts, the spinner of `this "invention .includes a .base I0 having upwardly extending ends II and I2 and a spinner I3.

The base is formed of a relatively narrow strip of comparatively thin material with the ends II and I2 bent substantially at right angles thereto and extending upward, and wherein the upper ends of the ends II and I2 bend over and downward providing projections I4 and I5, as illustrated in detail in Figure 3. The ends II and I2 are provided with aligned apertures I6 in which the ends of comparatively small stub shafts I1 and I8, rigidly attached to the opposite ends of the spinner, are rotatably held. The shafts I'I and I8 are preferably formed with rounded outer ends, and the projections I4 and I5 are positioned to be contacted by the ends, as illustrated in Figure 3, wherein the current flow of water or the like around the spinner drives the ends of the shafts against the projections, thereby spacing the ends of the minnow element I3 from the inner surfaces of the ends Il and I2, so that frictional contact of the ends of the minnow element with the ends of the bait is prevented.

The spinner I3 may be formed to represent a minnow or small fish of any type and may be made of any suitable design or material. In the design shown, it is formed of a comparatively thin, flat strip or plate with a rounded forward end I9 and projections indicating a tail 20 at the opposite end, and the strip is twisted, as illustrated, wherein the flow of current lengthwise thereof will cause the device to spin through the stub shafts I'I and I8 in the apertures I6. The spinner may be of any suitable color, although it is preferred to provide a bright shiny coating on one side with the other side dull or black.

The base plate IIJ may be mounted on a trigger pan 2| carried by the conventional lever of a trap, as illustrated in Figure 1; the base plate being provided with a plurality of radially extending fingers 22 which are adapted to be bent around parts of the trigger pan, as illustrated by the dotted lines in Figure 2.

The animal trap spinning minnow of this invention, therefore, includes a twisted plate resembling a small fish pivotally mounted in a base element, wherein the base element may be mounted upon an animal trap, wherein with the trap positioned in water having a current, the current will actuate the spinner providing a lure for animals feeding in the water. The trap with the spinner thereon may be placed in a lake, small stream, or may be positioned at the base of a cliff with a small stream of water falling thereon. With the device formed of this comparatively simple construction, it may be discarded after use and a new device substituted.

It will be understood that modications may be made in the design or arrangement of the parts WithoutY departing from the spirit of the invention. I

What is claimed is:

A lure for attachment to an animal trap comprising a strip of relatively thin material forming a at base, said base having upwardly extending ends, said ends each having an inverted U-shaped top portion providing inner and outerV legs, said U-shaped top :portions having aligned apertures in the inner legs thereof, a plurality of radiallsr extending gripping lingers attached to the under surface o|f said base, and a relatively thin narrow strip of material in the form of a spinner, said spinner having a stub shaft lcoaxially positioned at each end thereof and secured thereto, said stub shafts being rotatably mounted in the apertures of the inner legs of said U-shaped top portions, and having the ends of said stub shafts in -contact with the outer legs of said inverted U-shaped top portions, the ends of said spinner being in spaced relation from the inner legs of said U-shaped top portions.

ALSON J. FULBRIGHT, SR.

REFERENCES CITED ",The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

